Among the other participants in the project, Ron SANG is the first-generation Chinese who moved to New Zealand from Fiji when he studied architecture at the University of Auckland. A renowned architect, art collector and art book publisher, he is known as the architect of iconic New Zealand photographer Brian BRAKE’s home in Titirangi. We had a few conversations about his professional and personal relationship with BRAKE and his passion for collecting contemporary art. My idea of taking his portrait in the home that he built for BRAKE was well received by Ron but he had no objects from his family for my project. When I visited him again, he was sketching the floor plan of a new home design and the idea about the object from his family sparked. For him, his professional work and his art collection are his family – his Second Family.

BRAKE’s iconic Monsoon Girl surrounded by contemporary designers’ chairs in a tilted position is at odds with Ron’s portrait sitting boldly on the chair that was passed down by BRAKE to the current homeowner. For Ron, as an architect and art collector, there are disciplines but no rules. Similarly, my photographs aren’t bound by rules, only disciplines.